State University of New York at Potsdam

Performing Arts Center

Potsdam, New York

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The new, highly visible performing arts building brings the arts together under one roof, colocating the Departments of Theater and Dance, while connecting to the nationally recognized Crane School of Music. As one of the first academic buildings constructed since architect Ed Barne’s work in the 1960’s, the performing arts building respects the box-like brick structures dominating much of the campus, yet provides a contemporary, fluid and transparent architecture that conveys the energy and vitality of the arts within. Architecturally, we were inspired by nature—the sweeping roof drapes the theater’s fly tower much as blankets of snow cover the region during a good part of the school year; the silvery gray Trespa panels pay homage to the graphite industry, which spawned the area’s early development, while the building’s jutting form and extruded terracotta tiles echo the rock striations for which the Adirondack area is known.

“Pfeiffer Partners Architects’ performing arts center . . . is an example of close collaboration between professionals in the theater community and the building design unrivaled in my experience. . . . I’ve been involved in a number of building projects in my years as a theater technician; this is the first time I felt like I was actually listened to.”
— D. Jefferson Reeder, Technical Director—Dance, Drama, Opera, SUNY Potsdam